Fans rally around RPO music director Arild Remmereit

Fans of Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra Inc.’s music director, Arild Remmereit, have started a petition in support of the conductor after the orchestra’s board voted to terminate his contract prematurely.

The RPO board voted Wednesday to terminate his contract at the end of the 2012-2013 season.

Fans came to his support, creating a petition at Change.org asking that the orchestra reconsider and keep him on. The petition claims Remmereit “invigorated audiences and reached out to the Rochester community to build new levels of involvement.”

The petition had reached 50 signatures by midday Friday.

RPO chairwoman Elizabeth Rice noted that while Remmereit “invigorated audiences with his focus on women composers and lesser known works,” the board decided to move on for a variety of reasons.

“The RPO is working out the details of his departure, is currently developing programming for 2013-14, and will create a search committee shortly to find a new music director,” Rice said in a written statement.

Remmereit was selected by the RPO’s board in September 2010 to take over for retiring Music Director Christopher Seaman. The Norwegian-born Remmereit had been a guest conductor at the ROP on three occasions. He came to Rochester after stints with orchestras in Pittsburgh, Munich, Milan, Baltimore and Vienna, where he earned high praise and established an international reputation.

Remmereit took over as the orchestra’s 11th music director, starting a four-year contract in September 2011.